Study: Dust From Factory Farms Endangers Human and Animal Health

A recent research project published on Phys.org revealed that dust particles at factory farms are at dangerous levels. The study sampled air for three consecutive days on chicken, cow, and pig farms.

Richard Gates, a member of the research project team and professor at the University of Illinois, placed the farms along a continuum, with dairy farms being the least dusty and egg farms being the most. He found that pig farms, although not considered very dusty, are actually the most dangerous because of the small size of particulate matter.

The size and number of dust particles are both important factors. The smaller the particles, the more likely they can get trapped in the smallest branches of the lungs, causing numerous respiratory illnesses, from allergies to pneumonia.

A high percentage of farm workers develop serious respiratory issues over time. As a means of protection, workers are often required to wear masks. But the animals get no such protection and are forced to breathe in not only dust but toxic fumes like ammonia from excrement.

At factory farms, tens of thousands of animals are kept in filthy conditions and confined to cages so small the animals can’t even turn around. Unfortunately, this creates the perfect breeding ground for disease, which is one reason so many animals get sick and die.

Dust isn’t the only form of air pollution coming from factory farms. A recent study from the Netherlands found that ammonia from factory farms causes lung damage in local residents.

But the negative health effects are only part of the problem. Animals at factory farms are treated as mere objects, and their short lives are filled with misery and pain. Cows, pigs, and chickens are subjected to extreme confinement; barbaric mutilations; and grisly, violent deaths.

See for yourself:


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